Arvinder Singh Lovely has resigned as the President of the Delhi Pradesh Congress. His departure has sparked a new furore within the Delhi Congress. Reports suggest that Lovely resigned due to disagreements with General Secretary in-charge of Delhi Congress, Deepak Babariya. In his extensive letter, he mentioned various grievances and reasons behind his resignation.
'The matter should be taken seriously...'
Following Arvinder Singh Lovely's resignation, Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit stated that the party should consider the issues he has raised through his letter. 'He is an asset to the party,' Dikshit said. 'Our senior leadership should take this matter seriously. We must avoid anything that could hinder what the party has achieved in the state.'
Why did Lovely resign?
Arvinder Singh Lovely was under pressure to remove several leaders through disciplinary action, but the last straw was a poster related to Kanhaiya Kumar's office inauguration. Kanhaiya Kumar is the Congress candidate from North East Delhi, and his office inauguration was scheduled for Sunday. However, many senior Congress leaders were conspicuously absent from his poster, which has caused considerable anger within the party.
The poster for Kanhaiya Kumar's inauguration did not feature images of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge nor of Delhi Pradesh President Arvinder Singh Lovely. Kanhaiya Kumar's is the largest image on the poster, with the rest featuring Rahul Gandhi and Arvind Kejriwal. No other pictures were included on the poster.
Source: aajtak
Disagreements with Deepak Babariya
There have been cases where leaders objected to Babariya's approach. Lovely suggests that there is intense pressure to expel those who oppose him. In his letter, he writes, 'It is with a heavy heart that I pen this letter. I feel utterly powerless within the party, and therefore can no longer stay in my role as the president for Delhi. All unanimous decisions taken by senior Delhi Congress leaders have been unilaterally halted by the Delhi in-charge.' He further states that since his appointment as the party president, he has not had permission to appoint anyone to senior roles.
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Major statements regarding Congress alliance with AAP
In his letter, Lovely also expressed his disagreement with a Delhi state unit that opposed forming an alliance with a party that propagated lies against Congress, a party whose half of the cabinet ministers are currently facing corruption charges in jail. Despite this, the party decided to go ahead with an alliance with the Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi.
Lovely expressed respect for the party's final decision, stating that he publicly supported it and ensured that the state unit followed the high command's final orders. He even accompanied Subhash Chopra and Sandeep Dikshit to Arvind Kejriwal's residence on the night Kejriwal was arrested, although he personally disagreed with the issue.
Dissatisfaction over seat sharing in Delhi
Lovely wrote about his frustration over the share of parliamentary seats in Delhi after the alliance with the Aam Aadmi Party, which left Congress with only three seats to contest the general elections. When he learned about the allocation through the news, he ensured that tickets could be secured for other senior leaders. He publicly withdrew his name and declined to be considered as a potential candidate. Ignoring the views of all observers and local party workers, the seats for North West Delhi and North East Delhi were given to two candidates who were complete strangers to Delhi Congress and party policies.
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Opposition to Kanhaiya and Udit Raj's candidature
There was significant protest during a Delhi Congress meeting against Kanhaiya Kumar, the party's candidate from North East Delhi. Later, there was also opposition within the party against Udit Raj, the candidate for North West Delhi.
Recently, Congress in-charge for Delhi, Deepak Bavaria, hosted a meeting at his South Avenue residence, which was attended by former MLAs and ministers, including Arvinder Singh Lovely. During the meeting, many leaders expressed their opposition to Udit Raj and openly criticized Bavaria.
Amid challenges for Congress in Delhi, former minister and cabinet member in Sheila Dikshit's government, Rajkumar Chauhan, recently resigned from the party. He publicly accused Bavaria of humiliating him, leading to his resignation. Upon resigning, Chauhan said that Congress had chosen Udit Raj as its candidate from North West Delhi. However, he pointed out that Raj was accused of corrupt monetary transactions and using derogatory language against Brahmins. 'How could the Congress nominate such a person as a candidate?' he questioned.
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Former minister resigns over disagreements with Deepak Babariya
Rajkumar Chauhan, a former minister in Sheila Dikshit's cabinet, also tendered his resignation due to disagreements with Deepak Babariya, troubling the Congress in Delhi even further.
